The english we speak(BBC教学)第321期:To be fair 说句公道话

Life isn't always fair. But when having an interesting discussion with someone, it's often a good idea to explore both sides of the argument. Learn a phrase to help you do just that.

生活并不总是公平的。但在和其他人进行有趣的讨论时，我们应该尽量去分析双方的论据。本期节目将教大家一个与此有关的短语。

Neil: Welcome to The English We Speak: I'm Neil.

尼尔：欢迎收听地道英语节目，我是尼尔。

Feifei: And I'm Feifei.

菲菲：我是菲菲。

Neil: You know what, Feifei, I just love living here in London. I mean, the culture, the parks, the restaurants — it's got everything.

尼尔：菲菲，你知道吗，我很喜欢在伦敦生活。我的意思是，文化、公园、餐厅，这里什么都有。

Feifei: Yeah, it's not bad, though to be fair it's not the cheapest place to live.

菲菲：对，还不错，不过说句公道话，伦敦并不是生活成本最低的城市。

Neil: You're right. Though most world capital cities are quite pricey to live in, to be fair.

尼尔：你说得对。说句公道话，世界上大多数首都城市的生活成本都非常高。

Feifei: Actually, to be fair, I think there are a lot of reasons to move out of the big city — you know, more space, better air, fewer people, and... nature!

菲菲：实际上，说句公道话，我认为有许多理由搬离大城市。你知道，更多空间，更清新的空气，更少的人，还有……大自然！

Neil: Feifei, I think we've given good arguments on both sides, to be fair! And I hope we've demonstrated today's phrase — which is: to be fair.

尼尔：菲菲，说句公道话，我想我们双方提出的论点都非常好！我希望我们已经向大家演示了今天的短语的使用方法，就是“说句公道话”这个习语。

Feifei: It's a phrase you'll hear a lot, especially in British English. It's used when you want to explain more than one side of an issue.

菲菲：这是大家经常会听到的短语，尤其是在英式英语中。当你要解释一个问题的多个方面时，你就可以用这个习语。

Neil: Let's listen to these examples:

尼尔：我们来听几个例句：

Examples

例句

We played well in the first half, but to be fair we were awful in the second half.

我们上半场打得很不错，但是平心而论，我们下半场的表现太糟糕了。

Now, Luke. We know that wasn't your best exam result, but to be fair, you had very little time to prepare.

好了，卢克。我们知道那不是你最好的考试成绩，但说句公道话，你几乎没有时间准备考试。

Neil: So — it's a phrase that we use to give balance in a discussion. And it comes just before or after making a point, or giving an opinion.

尼尔：所以，我们使用这个短语在讨论中达到一种平衡。在我们给出观点和表达意见之前或之后，可以用这个短语。

Feifei: But these days, especially in spoken English, people sometimes just use it when giving an opinion — whether or not it's really about fairness.

菲菲：不过最近，尤其是在口语中，人们有时在表达意见时就使用这个短语，而不管它是否与公平有关。

Neil: Yes, for example: To be fair, The Beatles were the best band of all time.

尼尔：对，举个例子：说句公道话，披头士是有史以来最好的乐队。

Feifei: I think Italian food is the finest there is, to be fair.

菲菲：说句公道话，我觉得那里最棒的是意大利美食。

Neil: So be careful when listening out for this phrase — sometimes it's just a 'filler' phrase, something people say a lot with no real meaning. It might not always mean what you expect it to!

尼尔：所以听到这个短语时要留心，有时它只为“填补说话空白”而使用的小词，虽然人们用得很多，但却不表达任何实际意思。它可能并不总是你所认为的那个意思。

Feifei: To be fair, that's why we make these programmes — to help people understand real English.

菲菲：说句公道话，这也就是我们做这些节目的原因：为了帮助人们理解地道英语表达。

Neil: And they are some of the best English learning materials available, to be fair.

尼尔：说句公道话，这也是一些可以大家可以使用的最棒的英语学习材料。

Feifei: Though, to be fair, other programmes are available!

菲菲：不过说句公道话，其他很多节目也可以用！

Neil: Bye for now.

尼尔：现在该说再见了。

Feifei: Bye.

菲菲：再见。

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重点讲解：
1. to be fair 说句公道话；平心而论；
例句：To be fair, the team is young and not yet settled.
说句公道话，这个队还年轻，还没有成型。
2. whether or not (表示选择或怀疑)是否，是不是；
例句：I am deliberating whether or not to buy a new car.
我在考虑是否要买一辆新汽车。
3. of all time 一直，始终；有史以来；
例句：Many rated him the best singer of all time.
许多人认为他是有史以来最优秀的歌手。